by Tom Pelissero, USA TODAY Sports

by Tom Pelissero, USA TODAY Sports

JERSEY CITY, N.J. â?? All season long, Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll has preached to his players about every game being a championship moment.

And now that they're here, ready to start a week's worth of preparations for Super Bowl XLVIII against the Denver Broncos, Carroll says his message won't change.

"They know the language. They know what I'm going to tell them," Carroll said in his initial media conference after the team's arrival at The Westin Jersey City Newport hotel.

"They know how the preparation's going to go throughout the week to complete the process, and hopefully, we'll maintain the mentality that allows us to play like we did. That's all we're trying to do. We're not going to try to live up to the moment."

Everything's a little different â?? a little bigger â?? here in Super Bowl week, though, and evidence was everywhere as the Seahawks made their coast-to-coast journey.

Fans lined the streets to the airport outside Seattle. A red carpet literally was rolled out after they landed in Newark, the pilot waving a 12th Man flag as they taxied into the hangar.

A vocal group of fans greeted them with chants of "SEA-HAWKS" chants as players got off the buses at the hotel, less than a mile north of the Denver Broncos' waterfront digs at the Hyatt.

"Coach Carroll has done a tremendous job making sure we're prepared for that moment," quarterback Russell Wilson said. "We're not going to shy away from it. I've always been told 'don't be afraid to excel' and so that's something we're looking forward to."

A few dozen paces away, roughly 80 reporters crowded around cornerback Richard Sherman, whose televised rant after last weekend's NFC championship game win over the San Francisco 49ers drove the storylines during the off week.

"You can't say crazy stuff on a regular basis, so I don't think being at the Super Bowl makes it any different," Sherman said. "It'll just be a huge stage that you made a mistake on instead of a smaller stage."

How do the Seahawks, with no players who have appeared in a Super Bowl, keep this week from becoming bigger than the game?

"Me personally, I've just been preparing for this moment since the last game," safety Earl Thomas said. "We had a long time to prepare our hearts and the feelings that we need to play the type of ball we want to play. I think everybody has the right mind frame. That's been like that since OTAs, camp. Everybody had the same vision. That's why we've came so far."

Carroll got a taste of what's to come Sunday. He was asked multiple questions about his single-season stint as Jets head coach in 1994 and later was admonished by a local city councilman for saying he's happy to be back in New York when he was standing in New Jersey.

The Seahawks will practice this week at the New York Giants' facility, where Carroll said they may be forced indoors because the outdoor field is covered in snow and partially frozen. He compared the sendoff and welcome to major bowl games.

Asked about combating a feeling that players might be happy just to be here, Carroll acknowledged it's a concern but said that's never been the message, nor was the message ever about winning the Super Bowl either.

"We just talk about playing really well, week-in and week-out," Carroll said. "And I think there's a mentality that goes along with that that should keep us on track."